When adding like bases what do i do with the exponent?

Question

say Im adding 3x^2 + X^3. Do i add the bases to make 4x and also add the exponents so the final answer will be 4x^5?

Answer 1

Because the exponents are different, you cannot just add anything together. If you're trying to simplify the equation you posted, you can factor x^2 out of both terms so that becomes:

x^2(3+x)